Point defects in BaSi₂ thin films for photovoltaic applications studied by positron annihilation spectroscopy

Barium di-silicide (BaSi₂) is a very promising absorber material for high-efficiency thin-film solar cells, due to its suitable bandgap, high light absorption coefficient, and long minority-carrier lifetime. In this study, we compare the nanostructure, layer composition, and point defects of BaSi₂ thin films deposited by...

Realizing the Potential of RF-Sputtered Hydrogenated Fluorine-Doped Indium Oxide as an Electrode Material for Ultrathin SiO _x/Poly-Si Passivating Contacts

In high-efficiency silicon solar cells featuring carrier-selective passivating contacts based on ultrathin SiOx/poly-Si, the appropriate implementation of transparent conductive oxide (TCO) layers is of vital importance. Considerable deterioration in passivation quality occurs for thin poly-Si-based devices owing to the sputtering damage...

Evolution and role of vacancy clusters at grain boundaries of ZnO:Al during accelerated degradation of Cu(In, Ga)Se2 solar cells revealed by positron annihilation

Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) and Doppler broadening positron annihilation spectroscopy (DB-PAS) depth profiling demonstrate pronounced growth of vacancy clusters at the grain boundaries of as-deposited Al-doped ZnO films deposited as transparent conductive oxide (TCO) on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells upon accelerated...

Evolution and role of vacancy clusters at grain boundaries of ZnO:Al during accelerated degradation of Cu(In, Ga)Se-2 solar cells revealed by positron annihilation

Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) and Doppler broadening positron annihilation spectroscopy DB-PAS) depth profiling demonstrate pronounced growth of vacancy clusters at the grain boundaries of as-deposited Al-doped ZnO films deposited as transparent conductive oxide (TCO) on Cu(In, Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells upon accelerated...

Migration of Open Volume Deficiencies in Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon during Annealing

The nanostructure of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) is studied by means of doppler broadening positron annihilation spectroscopy (DB-PAS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The evolution of open volume deficiencies is monitored during annealing, demonstrating that small vacancies and other small vacancy clusters that...

New insights into the nanostructure of innovative thin film solar cells gained by positron annihilation spectroscopy

Recent studies showed that positron annihilation methods can provide key insights into the nanostructure and electronic structure of thin film solar cells. In this study, positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) is applied to investigate CdSe quantum dot (QD) light absorbing layers, providing evidence of positron trapping at the...